The instant invention pertains to the art of software based business methods in general. However, the system of the instant invention is for interpersonal communications between a plurality of people in separate locations at which their voices will not conveniently carry, such that the people may properly hear each other""s verbal expressions. Hence, an aid to transmitting messages is needed and has been filled by conventional intercoms. Thus, the invention more particularly pertains to the art of intercoms. In fact, the invention is a software based intercom having many of the advantages of a conventional intercom and further including additional, substantial advantages.
The prior art is devoid of network-based intercoms. The conventional intercoms that are based on hardware and wiring and are often installed in a building. Such conventional intercoms are inadequate in many ways and are expensive. The prior art also includes wireless intercoms that are also inadequate in many of the same ways as the hardware and wire type. In particular, prior art voice intercoms do not permit the recipient of the message to simply choose not to respond to a message without inconveniencing a sender. There are intercoms or messaging devices that illuminate a certain combination of lights as a code for a specific message. These light combination intercoms are inconvenient because they require the recipient to know the meaning of the combination of lights. Furthermore, the recipient may not know that a message is being sent unless he or she is looking at the lights. Additional drawbacks to the lighted system of an intercom is that the number of users and the number of messages are limited by the number of lights and the maximum number of combinations of lights in the system. Adding additional users is difficult because of hardware requirements. In order to expand an existing lighted or hard wired intercom system to include new message or additional users via additional lights, or to include additional locations can be difficult and expensive if not impossible.
The lighted version described above meets the need of keeping the communication somewhat confidential so that it does not obviously distract the recipient from something requiring his or her attention such as a procedure on a patient. However, under circumstances in which the recipient changes position in the office to a location at which the lights cannot be seen, the voice intercom system is required.
The voice intercom system has the drawback of broadcasting messages that preferably should be kept confidential. Alternatives for conveying information to the recipient include sending a third party to locate the recipient or paging them over a speaker system, neither of which is considered to be better than using the prior art intercoms.
As described above, visual and voice communication systems have been provided to display information and messages without any intervention by the recipient. This capability is important, for example, when the recipient is involved in other procedures and is not able to use his or her hands or voice to take the message. Alternatively, the recipient may simply wish to not be distracted at that moment.
Conventional intercom systems operate over telephone networks or dedicated hard-wired or wireless intercom systems. While these systems allow communication, they are not easily continuously modifiable to adjust to changes in the staff, the facility, or the messaging requirements. The conventional systems usually allow communication by a system of colored lights as referred to above. These colored lights are not suitable for colorblind users. These conventional systems may also have the capability of communicating digitally by a series of number codes or by text messages. These messages may be displayed in some prioritized order, but there is no choice of method of display such as static, scrolling, or flashing text.
The conventional intercoms add to the clutter in an office since they require a desk or wall mounted panel. The mounted panel may be selected from a variety of sizes and appearances available, but there is no assurance that they will fit of match the desk or wall to which they are mounted. Furthermore, mounting of the panels may require running power to the mounting location to supply power to the panel. Even most of the wireless types of intercoms require electrical wiring either for data transmission or for a power source. Hence the need for adding hardware or running wire is not easily overcome with prior art devices.
Outside the realm of intercoms, is a method for communicating called instant messaging that has some similarities to the present invention. However, instant messaging was designed for so called chatting on line. As such, there are specific differences from the instant invention. For example, instant messaging requires the recipient to do something in order to retrieve a message sent by another user, and is intended for immediate responses back and forth. Instant messaging does not utilize preset messages like the instant invention. Furthermore, instant messaging does not have the intricacies of the instant invention like prioratization of messages, being capable of dual messaging for a single recipient, and all the settings that are made available with the instant invention. Another example of the deficiencies of instant messaging is that a message cannot be made large enough to see from a distance.
There is a need in the art for a software based intercom system utilizing a plurality of computers networked over a local area network or being selectively connected to the World Wide Web (Internet).
There is a need for the software based intercom system to include a software driven dispatcher which resides in any one of the computers with a set of computer readable instructions for performing various functions. These functions may be adjusted by a user interfacing directly with the dispatcher, or indirectly with the dispatcher via one of the computers by selecting user selectable settings. As such, there is a need for the software driven dispatcher to interface with an intercom module software in each of the computers of the system in order to control the many settings for each of the computers.
There is a need for a software driven intercom module residing in each computer on the system with a set of computer readable instructions for sending, receiving and filtering messages as well as for controlling other user selectable functions.
There is a need for the software driven intercom system to avoid interference with existing software that is or may be currently running on the system.
There is a need for at least one symbol or indicator to indicate which message of a list was the first message that was entered into the system in order to enable a user to differentiate among messages.
There is a need for the messages to be accompanied by a unique tone or voice for each recipient in order to distinguish one from another. In this way, the users can be assigned different respective tone sounds to signal that a message has been sent to a particular addressee, which initiates getting the addressee""s attention.
There is a need for a software based intercom system to require no intervention on behalf of the recipient in order to retrieve a message. That is, there is a need for the system to receive messages automatically on respective user computers.
There is a need for the system to employ a voice activated message initiation, voice actuated preset message selection, and voice actuated selection of other user options.
There is a need for the system to be capable of identifying the sender and the location of the sender automatically for each message. This identification feature should be selectively activatable by users.
The instant invention meets all of the above stated needs. Primarily, the instant invention is a network-based intercom system that is a software based intercom system. The system is implemented on a network comprising more than one computer networked together over a local area network (LAN) or over the Internet. A plurality of individual computers connected to one another correspond to a respective plurality of network stations for users.
The software based intercom system of the instant invention includes a software driven dispatcher which resides in any one of the computers with a set of computer readable instructions for performing various functions including: routing messages, assigning individual audible tones to users, assigning message codes, displaying messages in order of priority by time of entry or other criteria, allowing pre authoring of messages, and designating station numbers. The dispatcher also permits several additional functions in accordance with user input from any of the modules on the respective computers of the network. These additional functions are initiated by the respective users. An example of such a function is filtering individual(s) or groups of individuals. However, the actual filtering is performed by the dispatcher software based on the user selected functions from respective stations.
The software driven intercom of the instant invention has a software module that resides in each member computer of the system with a set of computer readable instructions for sending, receiving and filtering messages. The software modules also facilitate modifying the placement, size, color, display format, and the time duration and priority of a display. The display format may include user selectable options including scrolling or page changing a list of messages on a banner of a display on respective computers of the system.
The network-based intercom system of the instant invention has software that controls the displays and the running of the system program. The network-based intercom system software prevents or inhibits interference by the system with existing software which is currently running on the system.
The system of the instant invention provides symbols and/or indicators indicating which of the messages in the list of messages was the first message to be entered so that a user can see the beginning, the end, and a sequence of messages between.
Messages are accompanied by a unique tone or voice that permits an addressee to distinguish one message from another with the instant invention. To this end, users are assigned different tones or sounds to signal the addressee when a message has been sent. This unique tone or voice may be in the form of the addressee""s own voice or the addressee""s name, either of which can be programmed into the system.
The instant invention further advantageously requires no intervention on behalf of the recipient in order to retrieve a message. The system of the instant invention causes the messages to automatically appear in the banner on the recipient""s monitor by software control. The messages scroll or are otherwise displayed. The system can be set to automatically shrink the banner and park it on the toolbar, or otherwise place it in the background, after a predetermined length of time after the message has been received. A user on any one of the member computers may program the length of time that the messages are to be displayed before being placed in the background.
While in the preferred embodiment, the system generally relies upon text input or other manual actuation for formulating and sending messages, the system may alternatively or additionally include one or more of voice activated message initiation, voice actuated message formulation, and possibly even voice activated user selection of options. Voice or command recognition technology including voice or speech recognition software may be integrated in the system to achieve a partially or fully voice actuated network-based intercom system.
The voice activated system could be activated by an assistant at a patient""s chair, or anywhere in the room. In this way, a message could be created by the assistant requesting that the doctor come to a particular chair or location. Alternatively, a remote control device could be employed in combination with the system. The remote control device of the instant invention can either be carried by the user or installed at a site. For example, a remote control device may be included or integrated into a chair structure or on a cabinet.
The instant invention also includes the ability to selectively, automatically identify the sender and the source location of a message. Like many other features of the system, this can be set by user selection of this option.
As can be understood from the disclosure above, the network-based intercom system of the instant invention relates to visual communication systems, and more specifically to an internal communication system having the ability to efficiently formulate and display a message. One of the specific features of the network-based intercom is that it gets the attention of the recipient without requiring an immediate response. This is of particular interest in order to avoid necessarily distracting the recipient from other, higher-priority activities at the moment the message is received. This feature is of particular interest in the medical fields since interruption of procedures may impact negatively on the outcome of the procedure. On the other hand, this feature is also advantageous in other settings and will be especially beneficial to support personnel such as for receptionists, for example. A major advantage of the network-based intercom of the instant invention is that it accomplishes these functions and advantages without the need of any dedicated hardware besides an already existing computer network.
While the apparatus and method has or will be described for the sake of grammatical fluidity with functional explanations, it is to be expressly understood that the claims, unless expressly formulated under 35 USC 112, are not to be construed as necessarily limited in any way by the construction of xe2x80x9cmeansxe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9cstepsxe2x80x9d limitations, but are to be accorded the full scope of the meaning and equivalents of the definition provided by the claims under the judicial doctrine of equivalents, and in the case where the claims are expressly formulated under 35 USC 112 are to be accorded full statutory equivalents under 35 USC 112. The invention can be better visualized by turning now to the following drawings wherein like elements are referenced by like numerals.